The young goalkeeper will hopefully stretch his wings on the Ligurian coast after Tuscany proved too cramped for him.
Fiorentina has offered us such a marvelous array of blunders this season that it’s easy to forget about the backup goalkeeper. David de Gea is as entrenched as any number one in Serie A after signing an extension this summer, leaving highly-touted prospect Tommaso Martinelli frozen out yet again. At least now he’ll get a run of games, presumably, as he’s joined Sampdoria on loan for the remainder of the season.
All the reporting I can find says it’s a dry loan, which is good because Martinelli still looks like a future star and losing him would represent poor long-term planning on the part of a club that’s made some baffling decisions with academy graduates of late (e.g. Michael Kayode, Lorenzo Amatucci). Hopefully he can use this experience as a springboard and really get his senior career going. Transfermarkt values are essentially meaningless but he’s the highest-rated U21 goalkeeper in Italy per their system, for what it’s worth.
His departure pushes Luca Lezzerini up the hierarchy and opens a spot for Oliver Christensen, whose loan at Sturm Graz has ended. Maybe our favorite lunatic Norwegian can pip Lezze for the backup role, although he didn’t have a good spell in Austria. Regardless, de Gea will probably play all the remaining meaningful games, so maybe it makes sense to send Martinelli elsewhere. After all, it’s not ideal to keep this talent on the bench.
In some ways, Samp’s a perfect landing spot. Martinelli will slot in as the backup to Simone Ghidotti, himself a Viola academy product, and will have plenty of familiar faces in Lorenzo Venuti and Antonín Barák to help him settle in. The Blucerchiati have conceded 25 goals (8th-worst in Serie B) despite the 5th-best xG against record, which could point to a goalkeeper change in the coming weeks, especially since new manager Angelo Gregguci may not have any strong attachment to Ghidotti.
It’s still a rather odd decision, though, because there’s no real reason to ship Martinelli out unless he’s guaranteed regular minutes; if he’s going to be a backup, he may as well train under Fiorentina’s coaching staff and watch de Gea. I can’t imagine this is a financially motivated move so perhaps there’s some sort of hidden guarantee for Martinelli to start a certain number of games. Otherwise, what’s the point of sending the kid to another city instead of letting him stay around his family and emotional infrastructure?
As a reminder, Martinelli’s from Bagno a Ripoli, just southeast of Florence. He grew up both in the Viola academy and in the Curva Fiesole. He’s that rarest of rarities: a local boy who’s got the talent to make it with his hometown club coupled with a genuine affection for that club. It’s impossible not to root for him, not least because he seems like a sweet kid whose appetite for goofiness is matched only by his emotional depth.
“My dear Firenze, the moment has come to bid you farewell…it’s been 12 years of love, dreams, and sacrifices. I want to thank everyone who’s been part of this journey. Today begins a new challenge where I’ll bring everything that you’ve taught me.”
Martinelli signed a contract extension in November 2024 that will keep him with Fiorentina for another 3 years so let’s hope hope that his farewell is just a young man’s emotions at leaving his city and club for the first time rather than the finality that it seems to be at first glance. Everything I can imagine points at Martinelli becoming, at worst, a steady Serie A level goalkeeper, with the potential for much more. I’ll be keeping a close eye on him with Sampdoria. Who knows, maybe the plan is to get him acclimated to the Serie B so he can take over there next year if Fiorentina gets relegated.
Forza Tommi, and we’ll see you again in the summer.
Category: General Sports
